Hello and welcome to the first instalment of the Fides Weekly Update. Here we provide you with a roundup of the top legal and business news of the week as collected by our Research team.

1.) The Volkswagen Emissions Scandal

News emerged earlier in the week that hidden software had been fitted to diesel-engined cars to deceive regulators during emissions testing. This threatens to affect and possibly reshape the automotive industry, as this article from The Economist explains.

2.) Merger talks across the pond

Legal Business reported today that US firms Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman and Chadbourne & Parke entered early merger talks, indicating further consolidation within the US market as mid-tier firms look to compete with globalised offerings.

3.) Followed by major team moves in Hamburg

DLA Piper has added a team of 20, including five partners from Bird & Bird to its Hamburg office. Hires join the firm’s IPT, litigation and regulatory and corporate practice groups, and double the current office headcount in size The Lawyer reports.

4.) Lord Sumption was trending on Twitter

An interview published with Lord Sumption in the Evening Standard on Monday caused a Twitter furore when he suggested equal representation of women at the top of the legal profession could inflict ‘appalling consequences’. Barrister Charlotte Proudman offered the best response we read as reported in The Guardian.

5) Linklaters London office was raided by Kirkland (again)

Nordic Head of Private Equity Rodger Johnson became the third partner to depart for Kirkland this year following corporate partner Matthew Elliot and competition partner Paula Reidel, reports The Lawyer.  Johnson relocated to the City in October 2013 following the departure of Richard Youle and Ian Bagshaw.

Stay tuned for next weeks instalment!

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